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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/22576450">fall into the sky</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mamichigo/pseuds/Mamichigo'>Mamichigo</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Kingdom Hearts</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe, Dream Demon, Dream Riku, Dreams and Nightmares, Fluff and Humor, M/M, Nightmare Sora, On Hiatus, sleeping realm</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-02-05</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-04-12</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-04-28 11:01:58</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>4</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>15,908</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/22576450</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mamichigo/pseuds/Mamichigo</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>“What the hell?!” The Dream looked like he wanted to retaliate, but instead he simply straightened his back, took in a deep breath, and unfurled his wings so they stood guard behind him--they looked tense, forced to stay in place. Sora showed his teeth again just in case. “Okay, fine, I guess I deserved that one, so I’ll let it pass.” Sora huffed and faced away from him. “Oh, come on…”</p><p>He didn’t react to the pleading tone, happy to sulk and fend by himself. Of all the Dreams he could encounter, of course Sora just happened to cross the one who thought he had a sense of humor. Well, Sora wasn’t laughing.</p><p>“Hey, I’m really sorry,” the Dream tried, with no response. Sora heard a sigh, then some shuffling, but nothing after. Curiosity winning over his desire for a pity party, Sora looked over his shoulder, only to come face-to-face with the Dream as he crouched next to him. The Dream smiled. “I’ll help you get home." </p><p>*</p><p>Dreams and Nightmares didn't get along, they said. Sora could hardly care, when a Dream was his only way of finding his way back to the Sleeping Realm.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Riku/Sora (Kingdom Hearts)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>55</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>118</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Chapter 1</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>This concept has been rolling around in my mind for awhile, so I had to take it for a test drive before deciding if I wanted to continue it or not.<br/>Sometimes you just have to write two creatures being gay</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>It was easy to get lost in the Bridges between worlds.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>As a Nightmare, Sora often travelled in those crevices, the links between the Sleeping Realm (where he and other Sleep Spirits resided) and the dreamscape of sleeping humans, all worlds away while also so close. Sora might have gotten used to it, if the Bridges didn’t all meet in an intersection with uncountable paths, each leading to places Sora couldn’t even imagine. It was hard to guess which would take him home.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Stretches of purples and blues surrounded him in all directions and Sora kicked at the floor as he stared at the colors. He had already taken five different paths this night, and was starting to give up hope on finding the way himself.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It was perfect luck that he happened to cross paths with a Dream whose sure way of walking had the strides of someone who </span>
  <em>
    <span>knew </span>
  </em>
  <span>where they were going. Sora made a noise to get their attention, running to catch up with them before the Dream could slip away and leave Sora to fend for himself.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The stranger stopped in his tracks and whirled around to face him. Sora stopped by him at the same time the Dream took him in, and Sora could see the moment surprise (and a hint of suspicion) overtook his features. While Dreams and Nightmares were rarely seen together, said to never get along, Sora was just desperate enough to accept help from anyone who just happened to have more of a functioning brain than his own.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“...Hello?” The Dream tentatively said. “Do you need something?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sora nodded, glad that at least the Dream seemed to be quick on the uptake. After that, however, they simply stared each other down, the Dream’s eyes swirling with colors and his eyebrows furrowing in confusion when Sora simply blinked at him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The Dream coughed into his fist. “This is the part where you tell me what exactly do you need help with.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sora perked up, because of course! Dreams probably couldn’t pick up on Nightmare’s thoughts and intentions like they did among themselves. But Sora couldn’t speak, either, not like Dreams could. When he talked, it was with a gargle of clicking and chattering sounds. Sora opened his mouth to demonstrate just that, huffing after.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh. I forgot about that,” the Dream muttered to himself, but still managed to sound clear and harmonious like the bells he heard in dreamscapes sometimes. It was incredibly unfair, and Sora made sure to show his teeth to make his displeasure very clear.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What’s with that, are you threatening me?” The Dream laughed. </span>
  <em>
    <span>That</span>
  </em>
  <span> sounded nice as well; it made Sora want to press his hand to the Dream’s abdomen to hear the vibrations of it. Instead, he only narrowed his eyes. “I can’t exactly help you without any info, little guy.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sora opened his mouth wider, the Dream immediately raising his hands in innocence. “No nicknames, got it.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sora nodded, satisfied with the compromise, but otherwise stayed put. He had nothing to write with, nor could he communicate with this Dream, so it was useless to try to get him to lead Sora home. Resigned, Sora sighed and plopped to the ground, sitting with his legs and arms crossed. The Dream watched with amusement, eyes glowing a warm yellow.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I don’t think that’s a very comfortable place to sit on. Though,” the Dream looked around at the infinite expanse of the Bridge In-Between, where nothing was there, besides themselves, “I guess it’s as good as any.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He was sure he was being made fun of somehow, but Sora let it slide, if only because his energy was depleting from world hopping too many times in one night. Sora slumped with his cheek on his shoulder.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hey,” the Dream started, trying to get his attention. Sora turned his eyes up to him. “I don’t know what’s the problem, but you should go home. You seem tired.” With a pause, he rubbed at one eye and grumbled, “And I am too.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sora chittered, almost growled, and gestured to the many paths around them. He shrugged as a reaction to the Bridge as a whole, annoyed that the worlds needed such a confusing intersection. He slapped a hand to his forehead, utterly frustrated.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The Dream stared at him for a long moment—long enough for Sora to consider taking a nap—, when he snapped his fingers, face lighting up as he did so. The sound his fingers made was strange, and it took Sora a few seconds to take notice of the dark purple claws that merged into; their friction must have caused the weird scratching sound. Sora glanced at his own hands, seeing their claws were about the same size (but Sora’s were still longer, he thought proudly).</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You’re lost, aren’t you?” The Dream suggested, prompting Sora to nod with enthusiasm. Next, the Dream cocked his head, silver hair falling into his eyes, and a smirk quirked his lips into a teasing curve. “You don’t seem young, but you still managed to get lost in the Bridge In-Between? You’re a pretty clumsy Nightmare.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sora seethed, the liquid shadows that made his form undulating along with his temper, parts of it floating upwards in thick, inky blots. For the second time, Sora narrowed his eyes at the Dream, but this turn he followed the action with a kick to the Dream’s ankle. His reaction was immediate, a yelp escaping at the same time his massive wings curled around his torso protectively, reaching down to the Dream’s thighs. His eyes were just peeking out from over the appendages, changed to a deep red.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What the hell?!” The Dream looked like he wanted to retaliate, but instead he simply straightened his back, took in a deep breath, and unfurled his wings so they stood guard behind him—they looked tense, forced to stay in place. Sora showed his teeth again just in case. “Okay, fine, I guess I deserved that one, so I’ll let it pass.” Sora huffed and faced away from him. “Oh, come on…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He didn’t react to the pleading tone, happy to sulk and fend by himself. Of all the Dreams he could encounter, of course Sora just happened to cross the one who thought he had a sense of humor. Well, </span>
  <em>
    <span>Sora</span>
  </em>
  <span> wasn’t laughing.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hey, I’m really sorry,” the Dream tried, with no response. Sora heard a sigh, then some shuffling, but nothing after. Curiosity winning over his desire for a pity party, Sora looked over his shoulder, only to come face-to-face with the Dream as he crouched next to him. The Dream smiled. “I’ll help you get home, as I had already been trying to. And as an apology…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>His words trailed off, his gaze falling to the side. Sora tilted his head, now entirely taken by the need to know what the Dream would say. He leaned a little closer, which startled the Dream, but he didn’t pull away. The Dream chuckled.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’ll offer you my name?” He said, phrased as a question like he was uncertain of himself. The Dream scratched a claw on his cheek shyly, and his eye shone a serene blue. Sora balanced himself on his elbows as he moved forward, moving his head at an angle so he could better take a look at them. The Dream blinked rapidly, his wings shifting to just barely graze at Sora’s arm when he almost slipped. “Is that a yes…?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It was impossible not to hear what Dreams were like, with all the gossip that went around. They were arrogant, sometimes a little too serious, didn’t take well to the Nightmares’ temper and general mischief. But more relevant to the moment, they didn’t give out their name to Nightmares; in the Sleeping Realm, things that could be named were things that could be summoned, called upon. It was a mystery to him why the Dream in front of him, with his melodious voice and his shining skin, would give his name to Sora, but it made Sora’s form falter all the same.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Distracted as he was, Sora let the silence sit for too long, and soon the Dream was pulling back with a guarded look of disappointment on his face. Panicking, Sora hurried to clutch at his wrists, while gingerly holding his claws away from his skin. With as much emphasis as he could put into one gesture, Sora nodded his head, his whole body vibrating along with it.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Now </span>
  <em>
    <span>that’s </span>
  </em>
  <span>a yes,” the Dream teased, but he was smiling kindly. Sora felt his own eyes squint in response. “Then… Nice to meet you, my name is Riku.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Riku…</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Riku.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Riku!</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sora chittered loud enough to make Riku wince, eyes squinted so far he could barely see, several blots floating and spinning around his head.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Woah, you </span>
  <em>
    <span>really</span>
  </em>
  <span> like that, huh,” Riku said. His eyes had yet to change from its blue tone, and Sora felt more of himself lose shape. Riku stood up with a laugh, and Sora followed right after, sticking close to his side. Riku looked down at him in question, but Sora only opened his mouth in response. “Well, okay. Let’s figure out how to get you home, okay? We can’t world hop too much, but maybe if I can figure out where you’re from…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Riku frowned to himself. The list of Nests in the Sleeping Realms was endless, Sora knew; from flower beds to bright, modern cities, the little pocket worlds where Dreams and Nightmares lived were many, full of possibilities, and one wrong turn on a path could take you to a new place entirely. He had heard of spirits who never managed to find their way back. Sora chittered quietly and pressed himself closer to Riku.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Are you worried?” Riku asked. Sora blinked and shook his head, making Riku snort. “Yeah, okay. We’ll figure it out.” Gently, Riku poked his cheek. “Maybe you can try giving me a hint and we’ll go from there?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sora thought of his home, of the sound of water and a moon that never left the edge of the horizon, glowing in the same tones of purple and blue found in the Bridge. He tugged on Riku’s coat to get his attention, and once he had it, Sora gestured his hands in a circular, fluid motion.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Riku squinted. “Is that a wave?” Sora nodded. “Well, that’s a start.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sora continued, next cupping his hands and holding it one above the other, letting some of his form drip to make a perfect circle.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I don’t know what that one means,” Riku grumbled. Sora pointed above them, where the sky would usually be found. “The sun?” Sora shook his head. “The moon?” A nod. Riku smiled. “Okay, great!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They kept going back and forth like this, until Riku had correctly guessed “night”, “horizon” and “beach”. On the third word, Riku raised his eyebrows.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Wait, are you from The Shore?” Sora jumped up and down while holding his arms high in the air. “An enthusiastic yes.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Riku nudged Sora forward to get him walking, and he did as Riku wanted. For his part, Riku took a few large steps to be in front of Sora, making it easy for him to follow along in the right direction. Sora blinked at Riku’s back.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Looks like we’re both lucky,” Riku said over his shoulder. “I’m from The Shore as well, we’re headed to the same place.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It was easy to walk behind Riku, but it was more fun to be right alongside him, where he could glance up and stare at multi-colored eyes, where he could make circles around Riku to see the shifting glow on his skin, and his wings twitch whenever Sora brushed it on a particularly narrow curve. Riku kept giving him </span>
  <em>
    <span>looks</span>
  </em>
  <span>, sheepish smiles and nervous brushing of hair, and though Sora didn’t know what it meant, it was still amusing to see. New. Exciting.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He completed another circle around him and croaked intelligible sounds. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Riku.</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>Riku’s next step faltered, one foot tripping over the other, but he continued like nothing had happened. “Yes?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sora croaked louder. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Riku!</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>That strange reaction again; a twitch of the shoulder, a sudden flap of a wing. “What is it?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sora made a loud sound that could be a laughter on anyone else and giggled and gurgled while poking Riku’s side. </span>
  <em>
    <span>Riku!!</span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span>Riku stopped entirely this time, and Sora, caught off guard, bumped right into him. Sora chittered in question, while Riku put a hand on his hip.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You’re calling me, aren’t you?” Riku accused. Sora shook his head and looked away. “You’re not a very good liar, did you know that?” Riku not so kindly informed. “Besides, I can feel it, somewhat. It isn’t the same as having your name summoned, but it’s a close thing.” He hovered a hand in the air, before settling it on his sternum. “...A tug, right here.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sora had never felt the sensation himself. Nightmares had other ways of communicating, and while they </span>
  <em>
    <span>could</span>
  </em>
  <span> summon each other, they didn’t need to, what with the easy mental connection they were able to make with their kin. It was with curiosity that Sora put his hand over Riku’s, searching for the sensation, the link that let Sora call on him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“...What are you doing?” Riku whispered.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>With a shrug, Sora pressed harder, his claws grazing Riku’s chest. His hand looked even more inky with Riku’s next to it, the neon purple a stark contrast to his dark greys and black. He chittered low in his throat as he felt the warmth that poured from Riku’s body be transferred to his own much colder one. He stepped forward, wanting to rest his head next to Riku’s hand, but was interrupted by a loud cough.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Uhm, we should… Keep going,” Riku said in a strained voice. His eyes were bright pink, almost neon.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>While he wanted to stare at the color a little more, that desire went unfulfilled as Riku dislodged the hand he still had on his chest, moving forward before Sora could stop him. Sora followed without a complaint, only now feeling the exhaustion that was creeping in on him now that they were almost at The Shore. He stood close to Riku, head lolling to touch his arm without fully leaning on it. It was tempting to close his eyes and rest, but he stopped himself from doing just so. After all, if the furious blinking Riku was doing said anything, it was that he felt just as tired as Sora, and the Nightmare would feel bad about keeping him up any longer than he needed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>As soon as their feet touched dark sand, Sora fell forward and had to be caught by one of Riku’s wings, which extended in front of him as a safety next. Sora chittered and stumbled along the way under Riku’s watchful eyes.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m guessing you did a lot of world hopping tonight?” Riku said, but went unanswered. “Will you be able to open your door?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sora grumbled some more, but walked closer to the sea until the water was lapped at his feet. He tapped his right foot twice, and the water retreated and rose in thin strips, making the shape of a doorway, but without a door to be opened. Several stars hung from the top, the water dangling like actual thread.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Riku couldn’t quite hide his curiosity, what with the way he whistled lowly and leaned to the side to try and get a glimpse of Sora’s Nest, though of course he saw nothing. Nests couldn’t be seen from the outside like this.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Got you home, just like I promised,” Riku said. He tapped his left foot just like Sora had done, but on the sand instead. The sand seemed to burn as it was lifted, glowing bright as if enveloped by fire. When the light settled down, instead of sand Sora saw clear glass, etched flowers on the sides. Sora couldn’t help mimicking Riku’s action, eyes roaming on the empty space between the glass to try and see if there was anything inside.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I guess that’s where we part ways, then.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>There was no chance of returning the sentiment: with a wave and one last smile, Riku stepped through the doorway, his body vanishing and the glass shattering into microscopic fragments to turn back into sand. Sora stood with his hand raised, lingering in his own doorway, not wanting to step in right away. When Riku didn’t reappear, he stepped through to be greeted by the familiar sight of glowing stars in the night sky, the water at his feet a perfect mirror of the view above.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Tired, Sora plopped down and allowed his eyes to close.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Dreams were really such strange creatures… Riku had given his name without even once asking for Sora’s. He wondered if he would've done the same in return, if Riku had asked for his, and quickly decided that the answer was an easy yes.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Rr..Ri…,” Sora croaked, tongue stumbling on the unfamiliar sounds. “Rrrh…,” he tried again, but this time only managed a hiss, an imitation of the actual sound he had heard coming from Riku’s mouth.</span>
</p><p>
  <em>
    <span>Riku</span>
  </em>
  <span>, he said in his head. Content, Sora let his body sink into the water.</span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Chapter 2</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>A much waited (but unfortunately short) second meeting.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Okay we are officially back on track! sorry it took me so long to come back to this. From now on, updates will come out on Sundays. Lets get this baby going, shall we?</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Riku startled out of his rest the first time it happened, the surprise of it so strong he banged his head back on grass and flower petals. He sat up and looked at the expense of his Nest, where the yellow flowers swayed despite no wind blowing. There was nothing there, of course, but Riku searched the infinite horizon all the same, a hand pressed to his chest.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>It took a moment to place the sensation: a tug in his chest, right behind his sternum, like a line inside himself was being pulled. He breathed in and tasted sea salt on his tongue. It wasn’t hard to figure out this was a call from the Nightmare he met before, and though it confused him why the Nightmare was calling to him, Riku was warmed by the thought all the same. Still, it was not like Riku could answer the call; it wasn’t a complete summon, and wondering about in search of a Nightmare was simply asking for trouble. Riku exhaled the breath he had been holding in and fell back once again, allowing the flowers to curve around him to obscure his vision and tickle his cheeks.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Maybe he could wait for him, if Riku was inclined to do so. The Shore stretched for miles, and there was no telling if the next time Sora used his door it would appear anywhere close to Riku’s location, so even that was an uncertain option. With some amusement, Riku realized he was putting actual thought into it, weighing the pros and cons as if already determined to go find the Nightmare.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Riku rolled to his side and chuckled. “What am I doing…?” He whispered to himself, and wondered why it mattered. Even if he was called, he had no obligation to answer that call. Plus, there was also the chance that it was only a prank and nothing more.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>But, well, if he didn’t want to be called in the first place, why did Riku offer his name, then?</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He closed his eyes and fell unconscious before he could find a definitive answer. If his thoughts were tinged an inky black, Riku could no longer remember it next time he opened his eyes.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>*</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The twinge continued after that, always at the most inconvenient times—which were all of them, as Riku could never get never get used to the sensation. It happened too suddenly to prepare himself beforehand, and it was gone before he could memorize every nerve-electrifying bit of it. It had him faltering, tripping, almost falling from rooftops. Riku didn’t understand why he was being called so insistently to begin with, but he found himself stationed at The Shore soon after it started.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The waves washed upon the shore without leaving a mark, and when they lapped at Riku feet, though it felt cold, no trace of water was left behind once it was gone. Riku yawned into his fist as his energy depleted, slowly but surely. If it continued like this, finding a dreamscape where he could feed into someone’s dream would be a pressing necessity, but he still had a while before it came to that. Besides, Riku was sure he would give up much earlier than that, if only because his pride wouldn’t allow him to wait for someone until he collapsed out of exhaustion.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>It was almost embarrassing to feel how his expectations grew, to know that he kept playing with the sand due to pent up nervous energy, and still he couldn’t stop doing it. Riku yawned again and looked up at the moon with a huff.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You’ve been calling me all this time, then I come find you and you don’t even show up,” Riku mumbled, face shoved into his fist. “Figures.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Riku touched his chest, hoping to grasp at the thread that could be found inside himself, but he couldn’t connect to it, not without the Nightmare’s name. It was a call without a recipient, therefore he couldn’t reach the other side at all. In sum, there was nothing much he could do. So Riku waited.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>And waited.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>And </span>
  <em>
    <span>waited.</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He waited until the shape of the Moon was burned into his retina, and though time was meaningless in the Sleeping Realm, Riku could swear it had been a small eternity since he had sat down. His body ached and he had to stretch his wing behind himself to stop the strange sensation of it being placed at a wrong angle for far too long. Riku knew it was time to let it go, and was prepared to do as much, up on his feet and ready to call for his door.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Just then, as if knowing he’d be distracted and caught off-guard, the pull was back, this time stronger, more alive, like lukewarm liquid running into his veins. Riku faltered, almost falling flat on his face and just barely catching himself in time. He looked around and tried to determine its origin point, but the connection was too wild, too uncoordinated to pinpoint.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Riku took a deep breath and cupped a hand around his mouth. “I’m here!” He yelled, pushing through the embarrassment of hearing his voice echo so loud. “I’ve been looking for you!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>For a moment, there was nothing, only the white noise of the ocean, muted in his ear after listening to it for so long. He strained to find something else, and twitched when he heard footsteps coming in his direction. Riku spotted a spot of black before the Nightmare could even come into view fully, and though he didn’t match the enthusiastic run of the Nightmare, Riku walked to meet him halfway.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He didn’t expect to get slammed at full force with a fully grown Nightmare with enough strength to make him cough, but Riku couldn’t even be too mad about it when he was preoccupied giggling and batting at the Nightmare’s face, whose fangs were pressed against Riku’s skin in a playful nibble.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Okay, okay, stop!” Riku told him and backed away several steps, only for the Nightmare to follow along, mouth still on him. “I know you missed me, but this is a bit much.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>That gave the Nightmare pause. He looked up at Riku and opened his mouth, letting go of him so he could tilt his head instead. Riku could almost see the question mark written on his face.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You kept calling for me,” he explained. “I don’t even know how you’ve managed to do that without speaking, but…” Riku shuffled on his feet. “It was really distracting. So here I am.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The Nightmare grinned and chittered in an apologetic manner, even having the courtesy of backing away a few steps. Ha patted Riku’s arm once, who couldn’t stop a smile from forming.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Apologies accepted,” Riku assured him. “It wasn’t so bad, really. Just unusual.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>And Riku had wanted to see him as well, though he had firmly denied the notion before. Now, with the Nightmare right in front of him, he could be honest enough to admit that he’d wished to know more about him, a bit fixated on the way his body language was so open that Riku could read him even without any words being spoken.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The Nightmare poked his arm and gurgled, his eyes squinting up at Riku. “It’s good to see you, too,” Riku replied.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Running circles around him, the Nightmare cheered, and Riku didn’t bother trying to keep up with him, though he was content to let him do his own thing, if that was what made him happy. After a moment, however, a pressing issue came to Riku’s mind.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh! Uhm, I want to have a conversation with you, properly, but first…” Riku found himself trailing off as his voice broke and he became tongue-tied. He ran a hand through his hair and, perhaps sensing his sudden nervousness, the Nightmare stopped to watch attentively, peering up at Riku. He looked away, shy under such an intense stare. “I never asked your name. You don’t have to give it to me, of course! But it’d be nice to call you something else other than ‘the Nightmare’ in my head. If that’s okay. With you.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Riku had to cough twice to dislodge the lump in his throat; he didn’t bother holding back his wince in reaction to his own stuttered words. The Nightmare, however, didn’t seem bothered by it at all, though he was losing shape entirely, all his sharp edges transforming into smoth, rounded surfaces. Riku tried not to worry about it too much with a reminder that the reaction had been indicative of good feelings, back when they first met.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Instead of getting an answer, however, the Nightmare crouched on the ground and scratched at the sand. Confused, Riku took a peek at what he was writing, managing to catch the tail-end of a letter.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh,” Riku breathed. “...Is it really okay?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The Nightmare didn’t look up entirely, but from this angle Riku could see that his eyes were barely open, and he was making low, rumbling sounds as he wrote on the sand. Riku lowered himself to the Nightmare’s side, head leaning slightly on his left arm as he watched the Nightmare write.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>S… O… R… A....</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Sora,” Riku read, once the Nightmare had stopped and turned to him with an expectant look. Sora didn’t seem as affected by his name as Riku was, but he still shuddered at the sound of it. “Is that how you say it? Sora?” He repeated, tested the name on his tongue.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sora nodded. “Sora.” Riku smiled, and decided he liked the sound of Sora’s name. “Okay.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sora chittered his agreement, and his eyes had yet to open further. Riku wondered if it was a Nightmare quirk, just like his own eyes changed colors according to his mood. Which led to the question of what color they were at the moment; Riku had no way of knowing, but he succumbed to the urge to look away all the same.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I guess it’s a good thing there’s so much sand around us,” Riku commented. Sora tilted his head. “So we can actually talk to each other.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sora stared down at the sand, and Riku was disappointed to find out he couldn’t tell what the expression he made meant. Riku considered laying an encouraging hand on Sora’s shoulder, but stopped before his movement could go beyond a twitch of his fingers. He opted for waiting for Sora, instead.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>His patience paid off a little later, as Sora scribbled something with more force than necessary.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>‘I can’t speak like you,’ he wrote, eyes downcast.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Riku huffed out a laugh. “I mean, yeah? I could already tell,” he stated, out of confusion more than anything else. Sora faced him only to show him his tongue. “Very mature. I’m not sure what’s the problem here.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>‘I wish I could speak like you,’ Sora replied, underlining </span>
  <em>
    <span>you </span>
  </em>
  <span>three times before adding several exclamation points.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What for?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>This time, Sora didn’t write a full sentence; instead, he circled “you” and added “name” beside it. Riku scrunched up his nose.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“My name? You want to say my name?” When Sora nodded, he snorted. Sora narrowed his eyes, and feeling that vengeance might befall him soon, Riku shuffled away from him, just far enough so his legs would be safe. “Again, what for?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sora wrote something on the sand, then immediately wiped it before Riku could read it. He poked holes into the sand before finally settling on a simple, ‘Because I like it.’</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Riku recalled his own elation when he first said Sora’s name and nodded in understanding. “I get where you’re coming from.” Sora wrote a question mark, but Riku resolutely ignored it by having his hair now hide his blushing face. “But, I like it like this.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sora drew a smiling face, which had Riku mimicking the expression in response. When Sora wrote, he let his tongue peek at the corner of his mouth, and he made low noises in the back of his throat like he was mumbling the words to himself, in a language Riku couldn’t understand. It was more endearing than it was troublesome.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>However, Sora wasn’t reassured by his sentiment. When Riku looked back, ‘One day’ was written in big, bold letters.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh?” Riku looked back at Sora. He added ‘Soon’ to his message. “You can at least try, that’s for sure.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Not taking kindly to the challenge, Sora used both hands to throw Riku off-balance, and he ended up sprawled on the ground while laughing. “What, afraid of losing?” Sora chittered angrily scratched at his arms so it left light red tracks along them. In retaliation, Riku used a wing to knock him into the ground as well, and Sora went face first into the sand.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He coughed and spat the sand while whining, and Riku was inclined to help for the entirety of a split second, until Sora coughed right on his face.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That’s gross!” Riku shoved his face away, and Sora only backed down after nipping at the back of Riku’s hand.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>It took longer than expected to catch his breath afterwards, and once he managed to sit up, he was greeted by an unamused stare and a message: ‘You suck’.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>It took all of his resolve not to dissolve back into helpless giggles. “Wow, our friendship has barely started and I’m already being insulted.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He expected the joke to earn a playful show of teeth, but Sora simply blinked at him. Distantly, Riku thought it looked like two stars flickering in the night sky, and thought he understood why Sora was given his name.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Riku snapped to attention when Sora gurgled to get his attention, patting the floor as well. ‘Friends?’ Sora wrote. He watched, waiting.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You have called me a hundred times since we met the other day, I think it’s okay to consider us friends,” Riku joked. More serious, he added, “And I’d like us to be friends.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sora expressed his enthusiasm with an emphatic nod, as always.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Glad we’re on the same page,” riku chukled, and immediately interrupted himself with a yawn. Sora chittered back. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>‘Are you tired?’</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Riku shook his head and wiped away at a tear in the corner of his ear. “Oh, yeah, a little.” Sora wrote a question mark, and wouldn’t stop adding them until Riku elaborated. He sighed. “I, uh… Kinda waited here for a while. I think I’m running a little low on energy.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He didn’t say he waited for </span>
  <em>
    <span>Sora</span>
  </em>
  <span>, but maybe the meaning was as clear as day, what with the way Sora rumbled and squinted at him. As his response, a surprised face was all Sora drew. After a moment of deliberation, he added spiky hair to the top its head, perfectly mimicking his own hairstyle (if only a lot wonkier in the drawing).</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah, I know, can’t believe I waited long enough to run low on energy,” Riku tried to play it off, but Sora didn’t look particularly amused by it. He jabbed the point of his claw to Riku’s side. “Ow!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>‘Rest,’ Sora wrote.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“But—”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>‘Now.’</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Sora—” Another jab, this time to his shoulder. Riku slapped his hand with a wing. “Stop that.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sora crossed his arms and stared at him, hard and merciless. Riku tried to avoid his gaze, but it really didn’t take much to make him crack. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Fine, fine, I’ll go get my door, geez,” Riku told him, to which Sora showed his fangs. “I promise,” Riku added. He just hoped he didn't sound as disappointed as he felt; they barely got time together that day, and Riku felt like kicking himself for it.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Satisfied, Sora unfurled from his aggressive stance. He reached for Riku’s hair and mussed it up with a hand, while the other squished his cheeks hard enough to ache.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes, I’ll miss you too, we’ll see each other soon, after I get some rest.” Sora seemed hesitant to let go, and even more uncertain of the truth in Riku’s words. Gently, Riku pushed his hands away and smiled. “I can summon you now, remember? Just call me, and we’ll see each other.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Placated, Sora stepped away so Riku could call on his door, letting the sand rise to make the glass frame. Riku hesitated in front of it, so he peeked over his shoulder, only to find Sora already watching back. When their eyes crossed, Sora waved with both hands, and Riku did the same, though more subdued. Riku reminded himself they’d see each other again, and found himself grinning as he stepped through the doorway.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>When he thought about it, Riku couldn’t remember when was the last time he had smiled this much.</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Next up: Sora and Riku go flying (among other things)</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Chapter 3</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Sora would’ve expected that, once Riku had his name, they’d be seeing a lot more of each other. Sora would call for him and Riku would summon him to wherever he was so they could spend time together.</p>
<p>That prediction wasn’t exactly wrong, Sora had to give at least that to Riku: when Sora called, he would answer without fail, and they met quite a few times at The Shore. However, it was always for short periods of time, as soon after Riku would be rushing off to go somewhere else by himself. This happened the first time, then the second. The third time happened as well but Riku brought him a shiny stone that shone the brightest in the moonlight, so Sora forgot to be mad then.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I'm sorry this is late (by four hours in my timezone), I underestimated how long this chapter would, but I'll be better prepared for that in future chapters! If there are any mistakes (typos or confusing lines etc), don't be shy to let me know. I shall now I sleep and I'll see you soon</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Sora would’ve expected that, once Riku had his name, they’d be seeing a lot more of each other. Sora would call for him and Riku would summon him to wherever he was so they could spend time together.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>That prediction wasn’t exactly wrong, Sora had to give at least that to Riku: when Sora called, he would answer without fail, and they met quite a few times at The Shore. However, it was always for short periods of time, as soon after Riku would be rushing off to go somewhere else by himself. This happened the first time, then the second. The third time happened as well but Riku brought him a shiny stone that shone the brightest in the moonlight, so Sora forgot to be mad then.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>(The gem was safely stored in the water of his own Nest.)</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Then there was a fourth time, and a fourth, and a fifth, and a </span>
  <em>
    <span>sixth. </span>
  </em>
  <span>By then, Sora decided it was within his right to set off to find a dreamscape where he could sulk in peace, so that was exactly what he did.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>His immediate luck was what wiped all traces of being upset from his mind; it was rare to find a dreamscape with vivid details, and even more so with a variety of details, scenario wise—though that was exactly what Sora got, entirely by coincidence. The average human would maybe have a single room, sometimes not even that, and their mind would conjure faces but no space, where everything stood in unending darkness. Those were Sora’s most hated dreamscapes, where he had to listen to these unknown faces speak of things he knew nothing about, sometimes yelling, sometimes not moving their mouths at all.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>This, however, was different. This was long halls and curving staircases, uncountable doors that hid new pianos, wardrobes, vibrant clothing. Some led to an entirely different place. He thought he caught a glimpse of a garden somewhere, but as soon as Sora turned to look, it was gone before he could find it.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Every step was its own adventure, every corner so far and impossible to see from afar, due to the low light that came from no specific light source. Sora wanted to inspect each little crevice, but got distracted by a new detail only seconds after finding the last one. He leaned in close to the wall where a tall painting hung, its muted colors almost faded into the background. The figure that watched him from above had no face on it, but Sora waved to it all the same, and it might even have returned the favor. Sora imitated the smiles he’d seen Riku make, all fangs and mouth hanging open. If the painting liked his show of friendliness, it didn’t say, but Sora figured it was only because it couldn’t.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>It was with some gloominess that Sora realized he wanted to show Riku this dreamscape, maybe take him on an exploration through the rooms to find out what was behind some of the doors. He could be wrong, but Sora had an inkling that Riku might like that sort of thing. Good mood now smashed, Sora huffed and plopped down to the floor, puffing out his cheeks and showing his fangs to nothing in particular. It wouldn’t be nothing if Riku was there for Sora to be angry at instead, he thought as he scratched at the floor.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Well, if Riku wouldn’t take his invitation to hang out, then he </span>
  <em>
    <span>would </span>
  </em>
  <span>make a nuisance of himself. With as much force as he could, Sora thought </span>
  <em>
    <span>Riku!</span>
  </em>
  <span> And let it reverberate from him to Riku, wherever he was. There was a twinge that might have been a response, but it was too weak for Sora to feel it much further than that.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Agitated, Sora bolted up and ran to one end of the hall, until he reached a door he could yank open. Inside, there was a single round table in the middle of the room, but not much else, though the moonlight reflected on the polished surface of it captured his eyes for a minute. But not for for long: soon Sora paced around the room with fervor, following the shape of the table distractedly while growling.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He yelled Riku’s name in his head so many times the letters blurred together until they had no meaning, and the thread of their connection grew thin. Sora wanted to shout his name out loud, and at that moment knowing that he had yet to make it past the “R” of Riku’s name meant nothing to Sora. He took a deep breath until his chest puffed, he clenched his fist as well as his eyes, and thought of the many places Riku could be in right now.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>Riku!</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p>
  <span>When he shouted, it was not a name that left his mouth, but the usual clicks and gurgles. Sora panted, losing steam with each breath, and the silence was noisy and static in his ears.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Just as he thought nothing would happen, he heard a startled shout, then a popping noise; next thing he knew, Sora was on the ground with something heavy crushing his torso, the same weight that made him bang his chin on the floor. Sora squirmed and growled in an attempt to get away, but the thing didn’t bulge. Done with being used as cushion, Sora caught whatever it was and threw it to the side, then narrowed his eyes at it as it went rolling to the other side of the room.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Shit,” was muttered as claws were dug into the wood to stop what would’ve been a painful collision with the wall. “Ugh.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Wings stretched out and batted at the air. Sora sat up and inclined his head, recognizing the colors of the creature in front of him. “Rhh?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>With a last shake of his head, Riku straightened up and looked up while rubbing the side of his face. Riku’s eyes widened and his hand froze. “Sora?” Riku didn’t bother hiding the utter confusion in his voice. “What are you doing here?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sora pointed an accusing finger at Riku and chittered at him. At least </span>
  <em>
    <span>he</span>
  </em>
  <span> didn’t fall on other people on the way here.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Me? I was summoned, though I don’t know…” Riku trailed off as realization dawned on him. “Sora, did </span>
  <em>
    <span>you</span>
  </em>
  <span> do that?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sora tilted his head further, then leaned his body in the same direction. Sora wasn’t sure if he had done something; he didn’t have any experience in summoning a Dream, and Nightmares didn’t work quite the same way. Well, he </span>
  <em>
    <span>was</span>
  </em>
  <span> calling for Riku, however. Sora shrugged.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Riku recovered enough from his shock to get to his feet and approach Sora, though he winced when he stretched his left arm out. “How did you even do that?” He asked, hands on his hips. He pondered it for a moment, and as he did, his eyes changed to a peach pink. “Did… Did you learn how to say my name while I wasn’t looking?” He chuckled, but waited for Sora’s response with an expectant look.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sora shook his head, then, to demonstrate, chittered a scratching “Rrrhhh.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Riku sighed. “Yeah, thought so.” He smiled then, and put a hand on top of Sora’s head to rub at his forehead. “But keep trying. You’ll get it right one of these days.” Riku’s eyes were back to that serene blue that fit him the best, and the color glowed in the dark like the sparkling gem Riku had gifted to him. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sora moved his head up to bump his nose against Riku’s palm, then nibbled on his fingers in greeting. Used to it by now, Riku didn’t even flinch.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What is this place anyways? I have to say, strange dreamscape you managed to find,” Riku said as he leveled a dubious look at the table.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sora shook his head and gestured to the door, but Riku didn’t quite catch the message and only raised his eyebrows. Sora huffed, missing the sand to help their communication. It was with only a bit of reluctance that Sora decided the Dream Eaters wouldn’t mind him interfering with this dreamscape just a </span>
  <em>
    <span>little</span>
  </em>
  <span> bit. With a push of his thoughts into the space around him, floating letters appeared to hover around his head, shifting and to form a sentence.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>‘There’s more,’ it said, and Sora pointed to the door again, this time more forcefully.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh!” Riku watched the letters float by. “So it isn’t just a room. That’s always good.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sora gripped Riku’s wrist and pulled him towards the door, the letters bobbing impatiently. ‘Come with me!’</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Wait I didn’t agree to... Sora, wait—” Riku yanked his hand against Sora’s grip, but it was too gentle a movement to truly break him out of it. “I was kinda in the middle of something…”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sora stepped out of the room first, then let go of Riku so he could face him. Sora narrowed his eyes at him and opened his mouth, tongue hanging out.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I have the feeling you’re mad about something,” Riku pointed out, all sarcasm and playfulness. Sora jabbed the dot of an “i” into his cheek. “Yeah, you are, okay. Got it.” Riku gestured for Sora to go on. “What is it, then?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>‘You always have something going on.’</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes? I don’t see what’s wrong.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Something about how Riku still had an eyebrow quirked up, how there was still a hint of a smirk at the corner of his lips was infuriating. Sora could feel his skin vibrate in response, his pupils shrink to dangerous slits. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>With all the patience he could manage, Sora added one word at a time. ‘I want to hang out with you too.’</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Though Riku had the decency to be more confused than condescending, it didn’t stop Sora from growling when he said, “Didn’t we hang out a bunch of times, though?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>‘No, I mean </span>
  <em>
    <span>actual </span>
  </em>
  <span>hang out.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Riku opened his mouth, but before he could add something that would only worsen Sora’s temper, he swallowed the words back and breathed in. In a quiter, more demure voice, he admitted, “I don’t think I understand what an ‘actual hang out’ means.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sora deflated then, all the risen thorns along his skin retracting back into smooth lines. Sora chittered and leaned closer to Riku until their shoulders bumped. Riku looked down at him, though his gaze didn’t quite meet Sora’s. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sora gathered the letters above his cupped hands and held it up for Riku to see. ‘I want to spend more time with you.’ </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh,” riku breathed, and Sora could feel it on his cheeks. His nose twitched at the sensation. “Uh. I think I should be apologizing.” It was a little funny, how bad Riku seemed to be at this kind of thing. Sora wondered if he got along well with other Dreams. “I’m sorry, Sora. I tend to wander a lot, I’m used to it. I didn’t think it’d bother you.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sora could understand the desire to do so, after all even he tired of looking at the same view from inside his Nest, or even from The Shore. But the thought of only seeing Riku through brief snippets of time between one world hop and the next didn’t please him, either. Sora held Riku’s face in his hand and pressed on his cheek until his entire face was squished into a ridiculous expression.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>‘Just be with me sometimes,’ Sora wrote, the words floating from his hand to Riku’s, resting on the curve of his palm. ‘We can wander together, instead.’</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Riku smiled and held the words securely without squeezing. If he could, maybe Riku would take the words with him, hide it somewhere in his pockets until he could stash it away safely in his Nest, just like Sora had done to his gem.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah, okay that works for me,” Riku agreed, and Sora let go of his cheeks to rub the top of his head instead, just like Riku had done for him before. Not commenting on the fact that Sora couldn’t quite reach that high, Riku lowered his head so Sora could pat at his fringe.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“So I made you miss me so much you even summoned me,” Riku joked. After a moment, he stepped away from Sora and gave him a sideways look. “I’m still worried about how you managed to do that, by the way.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sora, on the other hand, wasn’t concerned at all, as long as Riku was there, so he walked ahead, already inspecting the hall. ‘No worrying, only exploring.’</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He heard footsteps behind him, then Riku was beside him, glancing at what Sora had an eye on. “Fine, but don’t think I’ll forget about it.” Sora clicked his tongue and waved his hand at Riku, who chuckled. Then, he looked around and behind him, and finally back to Sora. “So, what’s so great about this place that you wanted to show me so much?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sora bounced two steps and gestured around him. ‘Every door is different! And this place is huge!’</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I did notice this is bigger than your usual dreamscape,” Riku noted with a hint of interest. Sora bared his fangs, and Riku shared his smile. “Want to open one of the doors, then?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>At that, Sora made numbers appear by each door, all the way down one side of the hall. ‘One to twenty. Choose.’</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Can I peek into the rooms before choosing?” Sora poked at Riku with the letter “n”. “Then let me think.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Riku put a hand on his chin and stared at the hall, looking like he was giving his decision serious thought. Sora watched from afar at first, but once he got bored of that, he got close enough to tug at Riku’s hair—who, surprisingly, let him without any complaints.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Let’s just go for the closest one, then we’ll go from there,” Riku announced. “Number one.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>With no reservations to be found, Sora jumped to the door indicated by Riku and swung it open; the moment he did, a gust of wind blew him one step back, but it died down to nothing right after. Sora approached cautiously, one step at a time, but once his eyes landed on trees and bright flowers, the caution was thrown away in favor of rolling on the grass.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>‘You found the garden!’ Sora told the approaching Riku in big, bold letters. Riku crouched next to him. ‘I wanted to see it!’</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Looks like we were both lucky,” Riku commented as he removed a blade of grass from Sora’s hair, only for him to go rolling in it again. Unbothered, Riku stood up so he could follow Sora. “What is this place?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>‘I don’t know.’</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You didn’t think about it past how fun it’d probably be, did you?” Sora, half-buried by all the grass and flowers, shook his head and bared his fangs at Riku. “That’s fair.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>While Sora was busy playing around with the plants, Riku assessed the place with attentive eyes. Though it </span>
  <em>
    <span>seemed</span>
  </em>
  <span> like a garden by how the flowers were placed and what appeared to be the remains of a stone path hidden by dirt, the place was so expansive that calling it a field wouldn’t be wrong, either. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Hey, Sora," Riku called and nudged him with a foot. “What’s that? It looks like it might be a fountain…”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sora followed his line of vision to what looked stones in a circle, farther ahead from where they were.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>‘Let’s check it out,’ Sora bounced the words to Riku, who agreed with a nod.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>It was silent here, Sora realized. Though the wind had been so strong when the door was opened, it remained still since then. Even as they brushed past all the plants, they never swayed. Sora chittered quietly and lowered a hand to touch the tallest plants they passed.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“This reminds me a bit of my Nest,” Riku commented. He looked up at the moon and shrugged. “The moonlight is new, though.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>‘Is your Nest nice?’ Sora plucked a flower, and it danced in midair without falling. ‘Like this place?’</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Riku winced a bit, but shook his head. “Not… Quite.” Riku scrunched up his nose. “My Nest doesn’t feel like this.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>‘Like this?’</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Don’t you feel it, this weird crawling up your back?” Sora stared at Riku blankly. “I guess you wouldn’t. I mean, we </span>
  <em>
    <span>are </span>
  </em>
  <span>in a nightmare, aren’t we?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>‘Of course, it’s easier to be in.’</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Riku smirked. “There’s your answer.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sora chittered in confusion, but realized that if it was difficult for a Nightmare to stay in a dream, then the same could be said for a Dream like Riku in a nightmare. Every dreamscape was shaped by the dreamer’s state of mind, deeply tied by the strings of their emotions. Whatever those feelings were, Sleep Spirits were affected by them when diving into the opposite of their own nature. So while Sora was fine, Riku could feel every pulse of emotion that created this dreamscape.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sora put a hand on his shoulder. ‘You okay?’</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It’s a little different, but it’s nothing I can’t handle, don’t worry,” Riku was quick to reassure, but Sora didn’t let go of him, just in case. Riku nudged him forward and smiled. “C’mon, we just found our mysterious fountain. Might as well check it out, right?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Even that didn’t tempt Sora into distancing himself, so Riku did it first, stepping away to sit by the stone fountain. He stared at the fountain and hummed, like a piece of stone was the most interesting thing he would ever see in his life. After a moment, Riku looked over his shoulder towards Sora and gestured to the spot by his side. Sora hurried to join and mimicked Riku’s noises of interest.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It’s a wishing fountain, I think,” Riku told him. Sora leaned forward to look into the water, and though it was hard to see at first, he distinguished the coins that covered the entire bottom of the fountain. They were rusted beyond recognition. “I wonder what it’s doing here.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>With a shrug, Sora balanced himself on the edge of the fountain to dip an arm inside the water and reach for the coins. However, even when his arm was submerged all the way up to his elbow, Sora couldn’t touch them. He chittered angrily.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“If it doesn’t work, it doesn’t work,” Riku said without any sympathy. “You know how dreamscapes are."</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sora fell back on his butt and clicked his tongue. The water dried off as soon as his arm was out of it, so at least he wasn’t damp.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>‘This isn’t fun,’ Sora decided. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“There’s a lot less than you’d think there would be, for a place like this.” Riku shrugged. “Not as lucky as we thought.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sora picked at the grass, but stopped when he heard a crunching noise. He looked down, but instead of living greenery, there was only dry leaves and dead grass, all gone dark brown. He exchanged a look with Riku, but whatever either of them was about to say was interrupted by the sound of footsteps. Crunching against dead soil.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>If Sora squinted, he could just make out the silhouette of a human person, standing in the garden in the opposite direction where he and Riku came from. While they were a good distance apart, Sora had the feeling the person was looking back at them.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>‘We should go,’ Sora wrote to Riku, who nodded.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>They went about leaving the room as quietly as possible as to not draw the attention of the person, while also making it quick as to avoid any trouble. They didn’t exchange any words on the way to the door, but as soon as they were out, Riku heaved a sigh.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“We should be careful about stumbling on the dreamer like that,” Riku advised. “It’s better to avoid trouble.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sora easily agreed. The last thing he wanted was to be caught by a Dream Eater for meddling in someone’s dreamscape, though they weren’t quite doing that.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That was… Something,” Riku said. “I’ll let you pick the door this time. You might have more luck than I did.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sora didn’t much care for which door to open as long as they opened it, so he simply pointed to one of the closest ones (door number four) and went about opening it just as he did the one before it. In hindsight, it </span>
  <em>
    <span>might</span>
  </em>
  <span> have been a bad idea to go bursting into rooms in a dreamscape, but Sora only realized that when his feet found no ground to step on. He screeched and dug his claws into the doorframe, flailing his legs uselessly in the air.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Sora!” Riku, who just processed what was happening, lunged to grab his shoulders and pull him away from the door. They fell in a heap for the second time that day, their limbs in knots with each other and both of them panting. Riku had a hand on the back of Sora’s head, probably to prevent his collision with the floor.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Are you alright?” Riku gasped out, a reminder for Sora to get up from his stomach. He offered a hand to Riku, who mumbled a sincere, “Thank you.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>‘Not lucky either,’ Sora wrote him.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah, let’s try not to repeat that.” Riku inspected him for injuries before gently flicking his forehead. “Open the door slowly next time.” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>With Riku’s advice in mind, they continued their way down the corridor, though there was little to see in the rooms they chose to go in from then on. Some were empty, while others were filled with books or unrelated furniture. One in particular had paintings lining the walls from top to bottom, their eyes watchful but the rest of their faces missing. Sora tried to go in, but Riku hurried him along before he could set foot into the room.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sora sulked for a total of five seconds until a new door caught his interest: it had a fish placard hanging from it. Sora tapped it to watch it swing and looked back at Riku. ‘Twelve?’</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Riku touched the fish as well. “It seems harmless enough. Twelve it is.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The door squeaked as Sora opened it inch by inch. When nothing came out of it, Sora opened it the rest of the way. The blue of the place inside was so stark against the muted colors of the walls that Sora didn’t comprehend it at first. Dozens of fish blinked at him and swam past the doorway, the water they were encased in crystal clear and refracting rays of sunshine.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>‘Pretty,’ Sora wrote.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Something about it doesn’t seem right,” was all Riku managed to say, before all the water came pouring out.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The two of them jumped back and attempted to run, but there was enough water to fill the corridor and drag them in a strong wave. Sora wasn’t startled by it for long, so he threw his hand up in the air and cheered in loud gurgles. Riku, clinging to him like a lifeline, stared like he had just grown a second head.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Luckily the window at the of the corridor was closed, and sturdy enough to take the impact of both their bodies when they crashed against it, then slid to ground in a graceless fall once the water seeped back into the floor. Sora gurgled and opened his mouth wide; Riku, unamused, spat out a fish and huffed.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I think that’s enough doors for today,” Riku declared.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>They both worked on getting up and stretching their limbs—Riku with more grumbling than Sora—, and once they did, Riku opened the window to let the outside air inside. He leaned his elbows on the windowsill, and Sora followed suit.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What’s with this place and water?” Riku asked. Outside, they were surrounded by an endless ocean, where the house they were in stood alone. “At least the air is nice, I guess.” As he said so, Riku’s wings extended and rose behind him, flapping like they were getting ready for take off. Riku looked outside with reserved anticipation.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Unfortunately, only one of them could fly, what with Sora’s lack of wings. Not that it would stop him from </span>
  <em>
    <span>trying</span>
  </em>
  <span>.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Riku looked over when he heard his grunt, eyes widening when he saw Sora’s form shift and stretch to imitate Riku’s wings. However, no matter how much thought and concentration he put into it, Sora only manage to make inky stumps, black substance spilling and getting all over the floor. He looked up at Riku expectantly.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You don’t have wings, do you?” Riku asked, more to prove a point than to really get an answer. Sora bared his fangs in reply all the same. “I don’t know what you expect me to do, I can’t fix that for you.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sora blinked at him, waiting for more, but at Riku’s lack of response, he slumped and chittered incoherent babbles to himself. Riku shifted on his foot and looked on guiltily, but after a moment or two he offered a hand to Sora.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I can take you with me, if that solves anything?” Riku tentatively added. Sora snapped his head up, staring at him. “Do you want to fly with me?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sora bounced up and down and clutched Riku’s hand to his chest, squinting his eyes up at him. Riku smiled and waited for him to calm down a bit before pulling Sora forward. Riku lowered himself to one knee with his back to Sora, arms held out behind himself.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Hop on and make sure you hang on to me, okay?” Sora followed his instructions and climbed onto Riku’s back, legs firmly wrapped around his waist. Careful not to get in the way of Riku’s wings, Sora pressed his cheek between his shoulder blades while his hands were curled between his body and Riku’s. “Don’t let go, no matter what.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sora nodded in understanding. Riku, satisfied, rose up and approached the window, one foot on the windowsill. Riku tilted his head towards Sora. “Don’t worry, if anything happens, I’ll catch you.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>There was no doubt in his mind that Riku would do as he said. Riku had strong, powerful wings that could carry him anywhere; not only that, but He was confident Riku would never let him fall. Sora rubbed his cheek against Riku’s back, who took it as permission to go on.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Riku propelled his body forward and kicked off the windowsill to take them up with enough impulse to catch an updraft. At first, Riku faltered in midair, unused to the extra weight, but he flapped his wings fast enough to keep going. After flying in a few experimental circles, Riku nodded to himself.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Okay, I’ve got this,” He said, then they were </span>
  <em>
    <span>flying.</span>
  </em>
  <span> Fast enough for the wind to howl, high enough for the house to appear distant and far smaller than it actually was. Sora, still pressed against Riku, watched the ocean and its waves, spots of blue and white, while twisting his hands and chattering quietly.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>‘Where do you think the ocean goes?’ Sora asked, letters floating in front of Riku without blocking off his vision entirely.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Riku hummed. “We’ll find out, when we get there.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>They didn’t talk after that, either because the wind was too loud for Riku to talk or because he had to focus on keeping both of them in the air. Either way, Sora was content in the silence, because he could hear Riku’s heart beating under his ear, loud and fast just like the flaps of his wings. Sora reached for the base of a wing, where the neon pink transitioned into an almost-black purple. When his hand made contact, the wing twitched, but Riku continued on unbothered by it.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sora burrowed further into the nest between the wings and thought a soft and warm </span>
  <em>
    <span>Riku.</span>
  </em>
  <span> This time, the call was answered in tandem, golden threads that blossomed in his chest and spread to his limbs.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Rhh,” Sora whispered, lost to the sounds of the sky. It was a pity they couldn’t stay like this forever.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>But soon Riku was slowing down and looking down instead of forward. Sora growled in question.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I think we went all the way around,” Riku said. “We looped back.” Sora stretched his neck to see under one of Riku’s wings, and found the black rooftop of the house, just as they had left it. “Do you want to stop by the rooftop for a bit?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>A quick yes was sent to Riku so they descended in slow circles until Riku could step onto firm ground. His landing was a bit more forceful than would be usual, and he winced on impact, but they were otherwise safe. Sora hopped down from his back with a lot of reluctance, but was appeased once they sat down with their shoulders pressed together.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“This was quite an adventure,” Riku commented. He sounded tired, but not in any way that would be concerning.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>‘Did you like it?’</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah, we should do it again,” he said easily. As an afterthought, he added, “Just with fewer crashes and crushing.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>‘I can do fewer crashes and crushing.’</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Riku chuckled. “I’ll be counting on you, then.” He cocked his head and smiled hard enough for small dimples to appear on his cheeks. Sora pressed his thumb to one of them, to Riku’s amusement. Sora realized that, in this position, the stars framed him perfectly, like he was the sun they all revolved around.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Right then, as Riku furled his wings one around himself and the other around Sora, he was overcome with the desire to say his name, to call it loud and proud. He wondered what face Riku would make, what reaction he would have. Sora would want him to smile, just like he did just now, and he wanted his eyes to be the serene blue that always pulled Sora into a sense of peacefulness. He would say it again and again, to see it happen over and over.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Though he couldn’t make it happen then and now, Sora still had some degree of power in this dreamscape, as long as he didn’t tamper with it too much. If he just gathered enough stars into his palms, if he just molded them into Riku’s name, Sora could gift it for Riku to hold on to, until Sora was able to say his name.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Rhh!” Sora called and turned to get Riku’s attention, but just as he did Riku’s head fell on his shoulder and Riku sighed.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Let me just get some of this place’s energy and I’ll get us both out, okay?” Riku murmured. Sora didn’t have the heart to disturb him then, so he clamped his mouth shut and clenched his hands together.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Another time, then.</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Next up: accidents happen, sometimes</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. Chapter 4</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>That was when he felt it, too. A thread hooked under his sternum, taut as it tried to get him to follow it. Riku looked down at his chest, the sensation striking somewhere similar, but it had a desperation to it that Riku hadn’t felt before. When he leaned away it clawed at him almost painfully.</p><p>Something was wrong, and he was being encouraged to find out what it was.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Note the brand new chapter count? Yeah, according to my Plans (tm) we have 3 more chapters to go after this one! Can I get a hell yeah?<br/>anyways, enjoy and all that stuff</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Riku had been planning to find a new dreamscape to hop into, when he heard a whisper.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>At first, he didn’t think it was for him, or even registered the sound, so he walked away on it to go in the opposite direction. That was when he felt it, too. A thread hooked under his sternum, taut as it tried to get him to follow it. Riku looked down at his chest, the sensation striking somewhere similar, but it had a desperation to it that Riku hadn’t felt before. When he leaned away it clawed at him almost painfully.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Something was wrong, and he was being encouraged to find out what it was.</span>
</p><p>
  <span> He walked almost automatically, letting the thread guide his steps without him having to put much thought into it. Riku observed the paths he passed, the lights that converged in the center then spread out in every direction. This wasn’t a section he knew of, though that wasn’t a strange occurrence: It was impossible to visit every single section or path, just as it was impossible to know every dreamscape. Riku trailed his fingers on the railings as he crossed the bridge into a new path, and when he stepped inside, the lights that had been burning at the corner of his eyes went out all at once.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Riku wavered where he stood, wrong-footed now that he was left in total darkness. There was still a sense of wrongness that clung to Riku, and though his instincts told him to go back to The Shore, something deeper told him he was needed here, right now.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Mentally, Riku pulled at the thread, asking a confused “what’s next” when nothing happened for too long a moment. As if in response, he heard something wet drop on the floor. Riku looked up, and saw that there was water dripping from the ceiling—though, with how dark it was, it might just be the sky, or something else entirely. The drips were lined in a perfect roll, and the water drops fell within a second of each other, making a melody every time they hit the ground. And when they did, a glowing spot was left behind, twinkling for a few seconds before disappearing. Riku cupped his hands under one of the drips, and when the water made its way into his palms, it shaped itself into a star, its glow a warm silver. Riku rolled the star in his palm, and it bounced like a ball, but soon it dissolved and seeped out between the crevice of his fingers. He looked ahead, where the path made by the other stars blinked out of existence.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It seems like you’re guiding me somewhere,” Riku whispered. With a last glance to the exit of the dreamscape, Riku followed the trail to the sound of dripping water.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Though focused on his objective, Riku still took the time to take in his surroundings, but found there wasn’t much to it. The dreamscape appeared empty for the most part, save for the falling stars. The thought troubled Riku but he kept going, if only because it’d be stupid to turn back now. Besides, there was still the thread that pulled him along, as much a physical touch as it was a scream in his ears. Riku wouldn’t be surprised if there was some sort of rebound if he tried to walk in the opposite direction.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Behind him, the lights went out, and no new stars appeared to light the way. That told him enough.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He made a slow turn, looking for what had so insistently brought him here. There was a blur of movement in his peripheral, and Riku quickly whipped his head towards it to find the source.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He almost didn’t see it at first: a black form that bled into the dark surroundings. When Riku approached, the creature’s ears twitched towards him. Riku paused at the same time the creature turned to look at him, red eyes too bright. There was something to the way it looked at him that told Riku the creature recognized him, and feeling like he might be crazy, Riku was sure he knew it as well.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He crouched and offered a hand, close enough to be inviting, far enough not to scare it. Riku looked into those glowing irises and spoke, more with heart than with mind, “Sora?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The creature twitched and hissed at him, and for a moment Riku thought maybe his intuition had been wrong. However, not a second later he had teeth sinking into his fingers accompanied by growling that was more greeting than an attempt at intimidation. Riku breathed a sigh of relief.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“So it is you,” Riku said, and Sora stopped chewing on him to lick at the shallow punctures instead. Riku scooped him into his hands, noting that Sora was small enough to fit in his palm. “Are you a cat?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sora made a little noise of agreement, and now that Riku was looking closely enough, he could see the similarities. Well, Sora was more a shapeless blob with pointy ears, but the shape of the head was similar enough. Riku pulled on one of the ears, which earned him a scratch to the arm.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I know I should make sure you’re safe, but I have to ask first…” Sora stared up at him with eyes almost too big for his face. “Sora, is this an empty dreamscape?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He shook his little head and walked in circles on Riku’s head, gargling out something that Riku couldn’t understand. It was hard to believe it; now that Riku had found Sora, the stars were gone, leaving them to look at nothing. This would look incriminating to any Spirit, but especially to Riku, who had personal experience with empty dreamscapes. He recoiled at the thought, but…</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Somehow, when Riku looked at Sora, he knew he wasn’t lying.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’ll take your word for it, then,” Riku said and cradled Sora to his chest, who happily settled down without complaints. “But you do seem to be in a bad situation, going by your form. I’m guessing you can’t change back right now?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Riku looked down to see Sora shaking his head. He frowned. “Then you got hurt?” Sora didn’t reply. “Did you call for me, instead of summoning me?” Sora shook his head again. It was a little strange: there had been something that brought him to Sora’s side, even if not Sora himself had intended to do it. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Alright,” Riku said. They could think about the details later, when Sora was safe. “I’ll just get us home, then we can have a proper talk about this.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sora whined and nibbled on Riku’s thumb, clearly unhappy. Riku laughed and swatted him away, though Sora came back not even a second later. Riku didn't mind it, more preoccupied with retracing his steps back to the exit. It was a good thing that Riku knew exactly where it was, since relying on Sora now would’ve been… Challenging at best. Sora was never good at navigating dreamscapes to begin with, but without a way to communicate, it surely would’ve been much worse this time around.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Riku had no interest in raising their count for how many times they’ve gotten lost in a dreamscape.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It was silent for a long while, though Riku could feel Sora’s eyes on him. Whenever he chanced a look at him, his red eyes were like beacons, fixed on Riku’s face. It might have been unnerving on anyone else, but Riku only chuckled, knowing it was Sora. It was easier to focus on Sora’s gaze, instead of how his footsteps were swallowed before they could make a sound. This was all painfully familiar, and the dread that crawled on his skin had nothing to do with the dreamscape’s emotions—which were lacking, like a carved fruit. A hollow husk. Riku tightened his grip on Sora without meaning to.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sora screeched at him, an urgent sound that broke him from his reverie. Riku forced his arms to relax, then smiled apologetically at Sora. “Sorry, didn’t mean to hurt you,” Riku said.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>However, that did nothing to calm Sora, whose voice grew in volume. He raised himself on his back paws and scratched at Riku’s chest, staring at him with eyes wide. Riku tried to push him away, but Sora clung to his arm and screeched louder.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Exasperated, Riku held Sora away from himself, up in the air where he couldn’t get to Riku’s chest again. Not that it stopped Sora from biting his hands, but it was somewhat of an improvement. “What’s going on with you?!” He hissed, and Sora hissed back. It took a moment for Riku to realize the hiss wasn’t meant for him, but something past his head.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Riku looked over his shoulder, and as he did, he heard the familiar sound of wings. He gasped and turned on his heel to take a better look, though he didn’t find anything. He exchanged a glance with Sora, who had the same petrified gaze as he did.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“We’re not alone in here, are we?” Riku whispered. Sora, trembling slightly in his arms, shook his head. Riku nodded in understanding, then lowered himself into a crouch, with Sora tucked into his lap. It didn’t make him less noticeable, what with the vibrant colors of his wings and skin, but it made it easier to look up while protecting his whole body. As an extra precaution, Riku wrapped his wings around himself and knocked Sora—who was hanging on the edge—back so he was hidden by it.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The sound didn’t stop, so whatever it was, it no longer bothered to stay undetected to them. Riku had a feeling it did so to mock them, since even with the noise, he couldn’t pinpoint its location. The sound bounced all around, moving every time Riku tilted his head towards it. They were being played with. Riku gritted his teeth.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Hold on for a sec, Sora,” was his only warning before he kicked off the ground, hard enough to raise dust in the air, shockingly gray in the sea of black. Sora whined and clung to him, though this time Riku didn’t mind the claws.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He made slow circles, out in the open where anyone could see him. He wasn’t sure what he was challenging, but he did it all the same. Riku had no intention of playing prey to some Spirit with a mean streak.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The taunt worked as well as Riku intended: he heard a caw, loud enough to be a screech. He winced and coreved one of his ears, and the few seconds of shock was enough for wind to rush right past his head, a little too close. Sora hissed and suddenly there was a wall next protecting them to the left. Riku peered up at it at the same time a black bird landed on top, eyes as yellow as gold, or maybe sunlight.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“A raven…?” Riku questioned, but had no time to take the creature in before it lunged at him. Riku froze his wings in place so they would free-fall away from the bird faster than if he had flapped his wings instead.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It wasn’t enough to stop the raven from following after them, but it put some distance between them. They had maybe a few more seconds to decide their next move before the raven reached them.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What do we do now?!” Riku yelled to the rushing wind. Sora squirmed out of his grip to peer down at the ground, his eyes glowing brighter for a second. A hole opened up under them, and Riku was assaulted by a myriad of colors as he fell through. Sora had interfered in the fabric of the dreamscape to get them away, but that was the least of Riku’s concerns.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He opened his wing just before they hit the ground on a stone path, made of glittering pebbles. Riku inhaled shakily and eyed the path, which continued on to a city with tall buildings, all too bright for Riku’s eyes. There was no trace of Spirit magic in the making of this place, so it was safe to assume Sora had nothing to do with it.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“It really wasn’t empty,” Riku mused out loud. Sora jumped out of his hands to sit on the ground, his tail swishing back and forth. He looked interested in the dreamscape, though how he managed to appreciate the view in their situation was beyond Riku. “It was just hidden from us, but that’s not something we can do…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Even the emotions had been stifled to nothing, but Riku could feel them now, like being poked at through thick layers of protection. It wasn’t the sharp, uncomfortable stab of a nightmare. A dream, then.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>A dream hidden away from Sleeping Spirits, and a raven that stood guard and attacked ruthlessly. Cautiously, Riku perused the skies, but there was no sign of the black bird.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That was a Dream Catcher, wasn’t it?” Riku asked, and Sora licked his ankle in agreement. “How do you even manage to get into this much trouble, Sora?” He joked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Though he said it lightly, their situation </span>
  <em>
    <span>was</span>
  </em>
  <span> complicated, to put it kindly. Unlike other Spirits like simple Nightmares and Dreams, a Dream Catcher wasn’t bound by the same rules—or any rules at all. They didn’t quite belong to the Sleeping Realm, instead being born out of human’s mind as a protective charm. Inside their Dreamer’s dreamscape, they were capable of anything. To top it off, they seemed to have stumbled on one that prefered the more violent approach to protect their Dreamer.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That explains why you can’t turn back,” Riku said, slowly connecting the pieces of what had happened. “It’s blocking the flow of energy from the dream to us.” Sora whined and scratched at the floor, staring at him impatiently. “Yeah, okay, we can’t just stand here forever. Maybe there’s another exit through here…”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They walked side by side in silence, Sora sniffing at the air as he trotted along, while Riku studied every wall and door with growing exasperation. Of course, finding the way out wasn’t a matter of </span>
  <em>
    <span>glaring</span>
  </em>
  <span> at everything hard enough, and there was no guarantee that the exit was shaped like a door to begin with. For all they knew, the exit could be random bush number seven, or passing cloud number twenty three. Riku sighed as he realized they were lost yet again.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You don’t look all that concerned about all this,” Riku wondered aloud to Sora, who was happily jumping from stone to stone, keeping his paws within the lines of each pebble. He paused at Riku’s words, and only looked at him for long enough to show his tongue, then shake his body in a “look at me” gesture. “Fair enough.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Still, Riku remembered how he felt when he visited a nightmare, and how the emotions of it had clung to him long afterwards, a glue that he couldn’t scrub off. He studied Sora more carefully, and noticed that his ears were flat against his head, while his eyes were alert even as he pawed at the stone and grass. Riku took a step to the side so his leg bumped against Sora in what he hoped was an encouraging nudge. Sora stumbled, but turned to lick Riku’s ankle again.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>That was a little better, but the sooner they left this place, the better. He hadn’t exactly forgotten about the raven, and the fact that it had yet to make another appearance was more unsettling than if it had been flying in plain sight.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They roamed the streets for a while, though it brought them no sudden revelation of where the exit might be. Sora eventually tired of walking and climbed up his legs then chest to situate himself on Riku’s shoulder, where he squinted up at him while swishing his tail. Riku rubbed his head, to Sora’s contentment.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>His fingers froze at the same time Sora’s ears twitched and stood up as laughter was carried to them by the wind. They exchanged a glance and Riku followed the sound, deciding it was as good a clue as any. It was better than wandering without aim, at least.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The laughter guided him to a hill, from where he couldn’t see anything below. There was nothing past it, only the horizon. On top of it, someone stood with their back to them, shoulder shaking as they laughed. Riku winced as he realized they were this dreamscape’s Dreamer. As he turned to leave them alone, the person did the same, revealing the raven sitting on their shoulder. The black bird’s gaze locked with his, and there was a viciousness to it that made Riku shiver.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“This is a good time to start running,” Riku told Sora, who didn’t have to be told twice. A wall appeared behind them, and when Riku chanced a look back, the Dreamer was looking at him with eyes as clear as the sky. He was still laughing, but he looked… Tired. Hollow.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Riku faltered, hesitating on his next step, but gasped when the raven screeched and dove for them. Sora headbutted the back of his ankle so Riku tripped and was sent rolling down the hill. The world spun in mad circles, and Riku heard more than saw Sora running along beside him while everything was reduced to tones of green and blue, blended together in abstract strokes. He landed at the base of the hill wings first, which wrung a cry out of him. Sora whined and went to check on him but as the caw of the raven got louder and closer, he moved to stand in front of Riku, growling.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>In his current form, it was hard to believe Sora had much energy, so it made sense that the protective wall he created was slow in forming completely. The raven noticed this and flew faster, finally landing on feet instead of talons. Its hands, made of shadows, reached inside for them. Riku broke out of his daze to sit up and envelop Sora in his wings, just in time for clawed fingers to wrap themselves around his wrist. Riku struggled back and kicked out in an attempt to get free, but the shadows seeped under his skin and into his arm.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The bubble was just about to close around them, but the Dream Catcher’s hand stood in its way. Riku grunted and pulled harder, breathing heavily as he felt the bitter taste of the shadows seeping away at his energy. Sora, feeling his distress, jumped out from his wings and bit at the arm clinging to Riku. Perhaps more surprised than in pain, the Dream Catcher jolted, losing his grip on Riku, and it clawed at air in an attempt to get him back. Sora took the chance to knock them both back and close the rest of the bubble, shutting out the view to the outside.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They tensed when something heavy pounded at the walls and scratched at it, but the noise soon disappeared—which didn’t reassure them in the least. Exhausted, Sora huffed and collapsed on Riku’s thighs.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Thank you,” Riku murmured and ran a hand down Sora’s spine. Besides a grunt, there was no other response from him. “Don’t fall unconscious, I need to ask you something. It’s important.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sora kneaded at Riku’s thighs and looked up, blinking at him. He tilted his head and waited for Riku to continue.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I know a way we can get out, but…” Sora stared at him with hopeful eyes, brilliant and open without a shred of doubt. Riku tensed and looked to the side, then rested his head on the wall of the bubble. “Do you have an assigned Dream Eater?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sora let out an indignant growl, like the very notion was ridiculous. Riku laughed humorlessly and nodded. “Yeah, I thought not.” He counted to three in his head, Sora’s eyes boring into him, then he straightened his back and faced him. “I’ll call mine, then. It’s a lot easier than trying to look for the exit ourselves with a Dream Catcher outside.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sora scratched at him, his hissing spelling out confusion quite clearly, even without any words. Riku sighed and patted his head. “I’ll explain when we get out of here, okay?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Though he hesitated, Sora nodded and sat back, tail high in the air and swishing. It amazed Riku how easily Sora trusted him, even without reason for it, but that was a thought for another time. Riku closed his eyes and raised his fingers to his mouth, then blew into them to make a high-pitched whistle that carried over the boundaries of the dreamscape. He heard a startled noise from outside, which just proved the raven still stood guard, waiting for its chance to strike. They would've been doomed if they’d gone outside in search of the exit.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Within a few moments, a light appeared before Riku, first gaining a round form, then sprouting wings. The familiar face of his Dream Eater grinned up at him while flapping its wings. It perused the area with curiosity, its eyes lingering on Sora for a long second, but finally it settled down on Riku’s outstretched hands. It chittered at him in question.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“There’s a Dream Catcher outside,” Riku explained quickly. The bat looked at his arm, still blackened where he had been gripped, but Riku quickly covered it with his wings to divert its attention. “We need to get out of here, and fast.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>His Dream Eater nodded and rose so it floated while rapidly flapping its wings. Riku glanced at Sora. “Cover your ears,” he warned.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sora pressed his paws to his ears, and Riku mimicked him. Then, the bat opened its mouth and screeched louder than anything they had heard today. Sora jolted a few inches off the ground and buried his face in Riku’s stomach. Riku himself gritted his teeth and curled into himself, though he forced one eye open to watch the dreamscape come undone like a shattered mirror. The shards fell around him like rain, with pieces of scenery painted in greens and whites. Blue eyes stared at him from inside a piece, and the last thing Riku saw was a sneer and a black feather.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>They came to on the same unrecognized section of the Bridge In-Between Riku had been earlier. The path right before them was cut off in the middle, inaccessible to them, and Riku made a mental note of its location so he wouldn’t stumble into it again once the path reformed.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>His Dream Eater chittered and landed on his shoulder, while Sora stood up and paced restlessly next to him. Riku petted the bat, but didn’t reach for Sora, his free hand clenched into a fist.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Do you want to go back to The Shore?” Sora immediately shook his head, but then thought better and nodded instead. Riku chuckled. “Which one is it?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sora whined and shook his body, then pawed at Riku. “I guess it’s hard to ask something when you’re like that, huh?” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He extended a hand to Sora, who sniffed at it before approaching. Riku scooped him into his hand and held him up to his face. “I’ll lend you my energy, just this once.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Riku closed his eyes and pressed his forehead to Sora’s, connecting their thread and forcing a push of energy through it. Sora nuzzled closer to the touch while making low sounds in the back of his throat. Riku thought he heard something, distant in his mind, but the connection was cut off prematurely as Sora’s body grew into his normal form. He fell onto Riku’s lap without any grace, and his first reaction was to bare his fangs at Riku.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The bat on his shoulder chittered in greeting, and Sora did the same back. Riku, still holding on to Sora, stood up and set out to find the path back home, while the other two babbled things he couldn’t understand. Eventually, the Dream Eater flew over to the top of Sora’s head to nibble at his hair. Sora didn’t seem too bothered, raising a hand to scratch at the bat’s fur.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Riku was just glad he had a distraction until they made it to The Shore, otherwise he wasn’t sure he would’ve survived the trip with Sora’s gaze on him. As soon as they touched the sand, Riku set Sora down, and the Nightmare flopped down on his stomach to lie a few steps away from the ocean. Riku followed suit, but he sat with his legs crossed instead. Sora poked playfully at the bat still on his head without looking at him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Well?” Riku prompted. He prefered to get this out of the way rather than draw it out, no matter what Sora’s reaction would be.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sora glanced at him, then at the sand, drawing circles without writing anything. His Dream Eater looked between the two of them and, perhaps feeling his tension, flew over to bury itself between Riku’s legs, chittering softly. Riku petted it gratefully.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>From the corner of his, Sora watched the interaction with a frown. Finally, he scratched a weak, ‘Why the Dream Eater?’</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Riku looked over the question already expecting it, but growing nervous all the same. He turned his words in his head, groping for the best way to explain it.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Do you know what Dream Eaters do, Sora?” Riku asked.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>‘Of course I do.’</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“They protect Dreamers from the influence of Spirits so they won’t be harmed by us interfering in their dreamscapes, right?” He continued, trying to draw out the picture for Sora. He nodded slowly, but waited for Riku to keep going. “Because a dreamscape is so deeply tied to a human’s emotions, interfering with it could affect their psych, even break it entirely. Some spirits abused it, trapped Dreamers in a loop as an infinite source of energy. Though, I guess everyone knows about that...” The last part was mumbled, as Riku realized he was walking circles around the central issue.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He glanced at Sora, who was staring at him unblinking. If the way his claws were sunk into the sand said anything, it was that he got part of the picture, if not all of it. There was no point in turning away from the question, now.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I hurt someone,” he said, too lightly. Sora made a noise, maybe a gasp, and Riku found himself clinging to his Dream Eater’s fur. “Looking back on it, I don’t know why I did it. Maybe I was bored.” Or lonely, but that was besides the point.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“There were no rules back then, Spirits just did whatever they wanted. But this made things dangerous for us as well, there were more Dream Catchers, innocent Spirits were getting hurt, some were consumed entirely.” Riku watched the moonlight play on his bat’s iridescent fur. “There was some damage control, and long story short, all Spirits who caused harm to humans were connected to a Dream Eater. They can feel any use of magic, and also sense their Spirit's exact location, depending on the level of the connection.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Riku put his hands around his bat and held it up, then turned it around so its grin was directed at Riku. The Dream Eater flapped its wings and wiggled in his grasp. “We kinda became friends.” The bat chittered its agreement, and Riku smiled at it.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>A weight settled on his back and Riku startled at the touch, looking back to find Sora’s hand resting there, rubbing circles on his lower back. Riku blinked owlishly at him.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>‘Were you sad?’ Sora wrote with his free hand.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Riku repeated the question in his head a number of times before it sunk in. He softened and shook his head. “A little, I guess. But not more than that Dreamer was. She seemed… Lonely,” He whispered. The blue of her eyes were similar to the boy they saw today, as was the exhaustion in them. “But then again, most Dreamers are.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sora rubbed his palm against the sand and mumbled to himself for a moment. Riku waited for him to recollect his thoughts, and was rewarded with, ‘That’s good to know,’ written on the sand. Riku stared at the words in shock.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That’s all you have to say about it?” Riku prodded, incredulous.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sora shrugged. ‘Yeah.’</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Riku laughed and lowered his bat to his face, where he could bury his expression in the fur. “Okay,” he said.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He didn’t understand it, couldn’t wrap his head around this level of faith that Sora had in him. It was strong enough that, even when Sora didn’t call out for him, they were connected, and it guided Riku to him. If Sora had any other options, his mind still settled on Riku, trusted him to bring Sora to safety. It had sifted through a myriad of different outcomes and decided that having Riku with him was the best way to ensure Sora wouldn’t get more hurt than he already was.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>There was no way Riku could make sense of such an irrational thing.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>A tug to his sleeve brought him out of his shock, and he peeked out from behind his Dream Eater to see Sora frowning up at him, nose scrunched up. When he noticed he had Riku’s attention, Sora tugged hard and shook his head. Riku frowned.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I don’t know what you’re trying to tell me.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Rhh… Ri!” Maybe unused to using his vocal chords to make words, Sora’s voice was high-pitched, half a screech. Riku winced, but didn’t interrupt him. “Rriku. Rh— Rriku!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The sound of his voice was grating, like plates being scratched with forks. It was unfamiliar and strange in comparison to what Riku was used to. And despite that, he felt his chest swell up, his heart beat faster, his breath stutter and cut out. More importantly, he felt his eyes sting, so Riku hurriedly hid his face on his bat again. However, his grip slipped when the bat squirmed and twisted until it escaped, baring Riku’s red face for anyone to see. Riku glared at his Dream Eater, but it looked happy about its own actions.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Embarrassed, he reached for the closest thing, which so happened to be Sora. Riku buried his face on his neck and mumbled something that was incoherent even to himself. Sora patted his head soothingly.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Riku,” he said, and Riku clung to him tighter. “Riku.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He didn’t cry, but it was a near thing.</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>You know those arts of black cats where they're just blobs with big eyes? that's sora</p><p>Next up: the aftermath of their encounter with the Dream Catcher (also known as Riku being incredibly stubborn about being taken care of)</p>
        </blockquote><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Edit (31.05): This fic is currently on hiatus BUT NOT ABANDONED. I am temporarily focusing on other things, but I'll come back to this. Probably when Melody of Memory comes out and reawakens my love for KH. Until then, lovelies!</p><p>I can be found crying over fictional characters on <a href="https://mamichigo.tumblr.com">Tumblr</a> or <a href="https://twitter.com/ma_michigo">Twitter</a>!</p></blockquote></div></div>
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